bitcoins and there functions

[user3088]

I find this currency quite intrigueing and i wish i had found about it alot earlier then 5 months ago. The way its created , used , stored. the list goes on.... but will it be possible to pay at a cash register with bitcoins ? EFT (electronic funds transfer ) its called that in australia or like card transactions are approved within 30seconds at most bitcoins take approx 5-10mins at the quickest to confirm if im correct?

[DannyHamilton]

card transactions are approved within 30seconds at most

And it takes hours until "settlement" occurs with the card processing company that that merchant had contracted with so that the merchant has the money in their bank account, and then it takes months before the transaction is irreversible.  Meanwhile, with bitcoin the merchant has their money within seconds, and the transactions are usually irreversible in less than 15 minutes.

[arjay45]

Yeah, and if the person is buying a pack of gum woop ta do if it ends up not getting confirmed. 99% of the time once the transaction hits the network it will be confirmed eventually, and the POS machine would be able to see that the transaction made it from the sender to their POS machine. (POS is Point Of Sale, also known as a cash register).

There's also litecoin that confirms in just 2.5 minutes. Still a bit long to be waiting in a store to pay for something but not the end of the world.